Lie? or Anti?
by ElementZero
Summary: The Russo's learn about anti-casters, ones who can counter their spells. Alex meets a new boy and becomes attracted. Justin exacts his revenge on Alex for her losing his comic but changes his actions after suspicion about her new boyfriend. pls R
1. Part 1

Lie? Or Anti? Part 1

A/N:

-I do NOT own Wizards of Waverly Place or anything related to it. I also don't own Nintendo or any other product mentioned here.

-This story took me a long while to complete, mostly because it centers on Alex. I wrote it for my younger cousin (mostly to annoy her...jk) who also is a writer here on fanfiction. I didn't realize how long it is, so I split it into two parts

-For the sake of the story, Alex is single and this is after Harper knows about Alex being a Wizard.

-Please read and review. If there is any criticism, please keep it constructive. And of course, enjoy!

* * *

The atmosphere in the wizard liar was filled with indifference towards the new lesson. Not even Justin, the eager learner, was motivated to learn. He had happened to get his hands on a rare limited edition comic book the other day. His anticipation was saved for comic book, not the lesson. Alex sat legs-crossed reading a magazine in the armchair next to Justin. Max was on the edge of the couch across from Justin intensely engaged playing the Nintendo DS. Max quickly jumped up in excitement.

"Yes! Just beat the level. Oh yeah, one more level and I'll beat Justin's high score." Justin looked up at max with a smirk.

"Fat chance buddy, because that high score is 100% unbeatable, yeah that's right." Remarked Justin with an air of confidence. Max rebutted back.

"Ha, I bet I can beat that score before…"

"Justin! Max! Can you stop with your nerd talk; I'm reading something important here." Alex interrupted. Justin looked at Alex with a look of disbelief.

"What's so important about your dumb teen magazine?" Justin asked.

"Does it matter? Anything is more important than your GS." Alex commented.

"That's DS Einstein, and for your information, you're not the only one that has something important to do. I'm reviewing today's lesson in this wizard book I fount. Once I finish I won't have to stay here for dad's lesson and I can get back to my limited edition of Dr. Electron and the Extraordinary League." Alex gave Justin her own look of disbelief and shook her head derision as she replied back to him.

"Ok, I take back what I said from earlier. After that comment, your ES just got upgraded to 'not nerdy'." Alex smiled at her remark.

"Once again, that's D-S. And Dr. Electron and the Extraordinary League is not dumb!" Justin commented. Alex nonchalantly replied with a "whatever". At that moment, their father, Jerry, walked into the wizard lair. Justin turned his head to check who it was and jumped to his feet when he saw it was his dad. He confronted his dad about the lesson.

"Dad, I just finished reading about today's lesson and read it over five times so I think I can be exempt from today's lesson. Really can't stay, I've got pressing issues to attend to." Justin stated. Jerry looked at Justin with a confused look, and then looked to Alex with suspicion.

"Alex, what'd you do to your brother?" Jerry questioned. Alex sighed in disbelief.

"I didn't do anything." Alex replied. She stood up and folded her arms in contempt. "I mean, no amount of magic could make Justin geekier. Besides why do you always assume I did something?" Alex continued.

"Might I remind you of last week, movie night with the neighbors? Justin acting mysteriously like a maid…a French one to be exact?" Jerry raised his eyebrow as he posed his question to Alex. Alex smiled and chuckled at the remembrance of the situation.

"Oh yeah, that was pretty funny." Alex then looked at her dad who had an upset visage about his face. Alex stopped her smile and proceeded to feebly defend her action. "What? It was more entertaining then the movie." Jerry shook his head and turned his attention back to Justin.

"Look Justin, I admire your motivation to learn the lesson early but today's lesson is too important to miss. So go back and take a seat." Jerry patted Justin on the back and directed him back to the couch. Justin rolled his eyes as he let out a sigh and went back to sit next to Max. Jerry continued with the lesson.

"Ok today's lesson is very important." At that moment Max excitedly raised his hand.

"Yes Max?" His dad asked.

"Is it about how to make a sandwich?!" Max asked enthusiastically.

"How-…what.-…Max why would that even be important?" Jerry rebutted.

"Because I'm hungry?" There was a long silence in the room. Max slowly reclined back into the sofa as he tried to avoid his dad's glare. Jerry continued.

"Anyways, the lesson is about special magic users called anti-casters." Before Jerry could continue, Justin interrupted.

"Uh, anti-casters? I thought today's lesson was about levitation?"

"Yeah, see Justin, that's why it's important to stay for the lessons each time. By the way, that wizard book is out of date, which is why I don't teach from it anymore. Now before I continue, are there any more random questions?" Jerry looked around at his kids, each shaking their head "no". Jerry again continued with the lesson.

"Now where was I, oh yes, anti-casters are specially trained magic users. However, they aren't like wizards, they're a much more brooding class, and they can be quite dangerous especially to young training wizards such as you. Anti-casters can reverse wizard spells and even cancel them. I remember when my brother and I confronted an anti-caster…" The Russo kids groaned as they could sense that a boring story was going to be told. As Jerry recalled his story, he paced around the wizard lair.

"I remember it like it was yesterday. Yeah, my brother and I were quite a rambunctious and daring bunch." Jerry chuckled at his remembrance as he continued his lackadaisical pacing." It was my senior year and the news around the wizard world was that anti-casters were causing a ruckus near our town. Being the brave kids we were, we decided to confront them. To make a long story short we both ended up with boils on our feet and bad breath for weeks. Not very pleasant."

"Yeah, just like this story." Alex muttered under her breath.

"Now luckily, we manage to get away with minor ailments, but let me remind you: anti-casters are very dangerous. What makes them so dangerous is that they can cast spells inside their head. Unsuspecting wizards won't know what hit them until it's too late. The best course of action is to avoid them completely. As always, you should never use magic in public and always keep your wizardry a closely guarded secret. Using magic in public can garner attention from anti-casters."

"No problem dad, with my superior wizard skills, I think I handle them if they ever cross my way." Justin added.

"No Justin, absolutely not. I forbid any action against anti-casters. Just keep your magic on the down low. Understand?" Alex stood up to her feet and began to walk towards the door.

"Yeah sure dad, anti-casters, bad people, got it, great lesson. Now if you'll excuse me, I have some undoing to do myself, like this extreme boredom I've had." Alex waved bye to her dad and left through the door. She walked quickly up the stairs to their loft.

As Alex closed the loft door behind her, she turned around to see her mom placing a box onto the kitchen counter. As Theresa finished, she noticed Alex and called over to her.

"Alex, thank goodness you're here. I need your help with something. I'm taking these boxes to the local charity, and I need someone to help me carry them to the car and then to the center."

"Why can't you just get Justin to do that?" Alex questioned.

"Because, you're the only one here in the loft." Theresa walked around the counter and to her daughter. She placed her arm around Alex. "Besides, I think helping out with a charity is good for you."

"Right, because nothing teaches life lessons better than carrying heavy boxes." Alex muttered sarcastically. Her mom patted her on the back in reassurance. "Don't worry honey, it'll be good for you. Now there's one more box that Justin filled. I think its still in his room. Can you go and grab it sweetie?" Alex indignant, twirled around to her mom.

"So it's Justin's box, in Justin's room…again, why am I getting it?" Theresa placed her arms akimbo as she shot Alex a stern glare. "Alex?" She said firmly. Her tone of voice was enough for Alex to comply. She sighed heavily and plodded towards Justin's room.

Alex opened Justin's door and stood at the doorway. She took a moment before stepping into his room. Justin's room was the last place she wanted to enter. Arms folded, she entered his room and slowly paced around it searching for the box. She eyed it over on the floor next to his desk. She strolled over to the box and stood over it looking at the contents.

"Gee, what do we have here? Books and more books. Just a box full of fun." Commented Alex sarcastically. She bent over to pick up the box. As she lifted the box up to her waist, she soon realized the full weight of it. Lifting it further, she quickly placed it onto Justin's desk. She leaned on the box and took a moment to rest.

"Wow, who knew information weighed so much." Alex remarked. She stared at the box contemplating her next move. The corner of a photo underneath the box caught her eye. She dug her hand underneath the box to tip it in order to remove the photo. Alex held the tipped box in place with one hand as she looked at the photo. It was a picture of Justin in a robot costume with his robotics team. Alex smirked.

"This is so going to be blackmail." She jested. As she chuckled at the picture she accidentally tipped the box too far causing the contents to spill onto the desk. The books and magazines mixed with the items on Justin's desk, including his limited edition comic. Alex quickly conjured up an excuse.

"Oh my goodness, just look at this mess that Justin made. He'll have to clean this up. I guess I can't take this box then." Alex feignedly justified. She looked at the spilled contents and shrugged. Before she could leave the room, her mom stopped at the doorway.

"Oh my goodness, what happened to the box?" Theresa questioned.

"Oh, yeah, I think Justin didn't finish packing the box, I guess we can't take it." Alex lied.

"Alex Russo, that box was filled and finished. Now go clean it up and let's go." Her mom reprimanded. Alex grumbled as she turned around and trudged towards the desk. She placed the box upright and began filling it with the spilled contents on the desk. Unknowingly she threw Justin's rare comic into the box. Alex then began to lift the box only to set it back down.

"I forgot this was heavy. Hmm…let's see, what spell can I use here." Alex tapped her finger on her cheek as she thought of a spell to help her. After some contemplation she snapped her fingers as she got an idea. She looked up and down the desk searching for a wand. Alex spotted one on the top shelf. She reached up and grabbed it and then pointed it towards the box.

"I hope this works: I helped clean up this mess, now make this box weigh much less." Alex inspected the box to check if her magic worked. She grabbed the handle on one side and picked it up with ease. She nodded in satisfaction and took the box downstairs.

* * *

Alex and her mom arrived at the center. Theresa opened the trunk and the two started to unload the boxes. Theresa struggled to carry her boxes while Alex picked up hers with ease.

"Alex, I'm surprised. Have you been working out?" Her mom noted. Alex quickly played along.

"Um yeah mom, you know. Three times every week." Alex faked a smile trying to convince her mom. At that moment, her phone beeped. Without thinking, she held the box from the bottom with one hand as she grabbed her phone from her pocket. It was a message from her dad.

"Oh mom, dad wants you to buy milk on the way home." Alex said. Her mom looked at her with an eyebrow raised. Alex suddenly realized that she had been holding the box with one hand.

"Ahem?" her mom let out. Alex quickly tried to cover. "Oh it's just all that weight training that I've been doing…yeah." She quickly slipped her phone into her pocket and grabbed the box with two hands.

"You mean magic? Alexandra Margarita Russo! I told you not to use magic."

"Mom can't we talk about this later? This box is so heavy." Alex exaggerated. She pretended to stumble a bit, playing to her lie. Her mom shook her head and turned around and the two headed into the center. They were greeted by a worker there who prompted them to place the boxes down on certain tables. Still trying to convince her mom, Alex pretended to struggle with carrying the box. Unfortunately, her plan went sour as her foot caught a leg of the table. She felt herself stumbling forward with the box in front of her. Instead of falling on the ground however, something had stopped her. Alex looked up to check what had stopped her fall, only to find herself looking at a cute face. A boy had grabbed the box before she could fall down. Their eyes met and there was an instant attraction. Alex held still, gazing at his dark brown eyes. She felt dumbfounded and like a deer caught in the headlights. Everything else around her became seemingly irrelevant as all she could focus on was him smiling at her.

"You ok there?" He smiled waiting for her response. Alex could only respond with a giggle and coy smile. The boy looked back at her with an unsure face. Alex finally managed to speak, but not before stumbling a bit with her words.

"I'm um…you know uh…I'm okay, yeah." Alex managed to get out. She nodded her head a bit as she continued to smile. Usually talkative, Alex could only stop and gaze at his brown eyes. Something about him appealed to Alex, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. A long lull ensued and the two stood there. The boy, who was gazing back at Alex, shifted his eyes elsewhere as he finally broke the silence.

"So, you need help with carrying this box?" He asked. Alex still in a daze, uttered out in awkwardness.

"Box? What box?" The boy let out a smirk. "This box that you're holding." He lifted the box a bit for emphasis. Alex came to and, completely embarrassed, blushed and gave out a giggle.

"Oh yeah this box. I mean what other box is there?" She said smiling some more, beaming from ear to ear. The boy let out a half chuckle at Alex's mistake. Unseen, but surely felt, was a unique attraction between the two. Neither two could quite definitively describe it, but they each knew there was an attraction.

The two stood in silence until the boy took the initiative and shifted the box towards him. Alex came to and noticed him taking the box. She nodded in acknowledgement and let him take the box. Holding the box in his hands, the boy looked puzzled.

"Hmm, seems a lot lighter than it looks." He commented while inspecting the box. Alex quickly answered back.

"Oh well, I guess your just so much more stronger than I am." Alex coyly complemented. Her tone of voice was less genuine, more flirting. An unexpected demure show from Alex, but something about the boy brought the quality out of her. Theresa, who stood at a distance, picked up on Alex's feigning show. Arms akimbo, she shook her head in disbelief. If there was anything to motivate Alex to do work, it was a cute boy.

The boy set the box down on the table and turned back to Alex. "So…" He let out breaking the silence. "You come down here to help out?"

"Oh yeah, definitely. I'm quite the helpful girl. I just love working at charities. Especially this place. Yeah, here at…" Alex quickly surveyed around searching for the name of the place.

"At Assumption Church?" The boy supplemented, finishing her sentence.

"Yeah, that's the name. Just must be forgetting because of all the charities I work at." Alex exaggerated. The boy extended his hand as he introduced himself.

"The name's Joey by the way." Alex smiled and shook his hand. "I'm Alex." She coyly responded.

"Well Alex, I'm glad you're here to help. Most people our age usually aren't involved in volunteering. It's great that you're here." Joey complemented her. Alex giggled a bit before replying.

"I think it's great that you think it's great." Alex paused a moment to mentally check if her sentence made sense. After some thought, she continued. "So, you help out here too?"

"Yup, I help out here every so often. I make it a habit to be involved in a lot of places, much like you." He lightheartedly remarked as he let out a smirk. Alex couldn't help but giggle and smirk back.

"What you trying to say? That I don't actually volunteer as much as I claim?" Alex playfully insinuated.

"Well, it does become questionable when a pretty girl like you has a copy of Dr. Electron." Joey replied as he picked up the comic from Alex's box.

"Oh that's not my box, that's my nerdy brother's stuff. But anyways, back to something important…So you think I'm pretty?" Alex held her arms akimbo as she waited for Joey's response. Not expecting Alex's question, Joey stood and smirked as he formulated a good response in his head. Fortunately for him, Theresa interjected, much to Alex's displeasure.

"Alex honey, let's go. I've got lots to do at home and the sub shop. Come on." Alex groaned noticeably at her mom's interruption. Remembering that Joey was there next to her, she quickly tried to keep her composure.

"Mother, why hello. So nice of you to…interrupt." Alex replied with her teeth clenched. Theresa looked from Alex's face to Joey's and instant cued in.

"Alex, you didn't introduce me to your friend here. Hi, I'm Alex's mother." Theresa extended her hand to shake. Joey shook her hand and introduced himself. Unable to bear the embarrassment, Alex quickly stepped in.

"You know, on second thought, we do have much to do at home mom. So why don't we just go. Like now." An irritated Alex suggested. She knew she couldn't keep up her composure much more. Picking up on this, Theresa decided to sustain it a bit longer.

"Alex, please, don't be so rude-"

"Mom!" Alex yelled. She took her mom by the hand and tugged on her to go. After a few pulls her mom gave in. Theresa waved goodbye to Joey and walked towards the door. Making sure her mom was on her way, Alex turned and gave her own special wave to Joey. She coupled it with a beaming smile. A smile that would show her interest in him yet not too over affectionate. It seemed to work as he returned a wave and smile of his own.

* * *

Justin pulled the sheets of his bed, then lifted his mattress in desperation. He looked high and low, searching every corner of his room checking and rechecking again. The comic book was something special to him, and he could bear to lose it, especially at the price he paid for it. He sat down at his desk trying to recollect his thoughts, thinking where he could have placed it last. At that moment he heard the front door open. Justin raced to check if perhaps his mom knew where it was.

Theresa closed the door behind her after Alex walked in. She turned around to see a frantic Justin.

"Mom, mom! You have to help me."

"You need more help than mom can give you." Alex jested. Justin slowly turned his head to Alex and gave her a cold stare.

"I don't have time for your witty remarks." Justin made air quotes as his said 'witty'. Alex rolled her eyes in response and plopped down onto the couch.

"Justin honey, what's the problem?" His mom asked.

"Have you seen my comic, you know, Dr. Electron special mint edition?" Theresa shook her head. "Sorry honey, I haven't seen it. After helping you pack the box, I haven't been in your room." Alex, who was barely listening as it was, instantly remembered that the comic was in the box she had brought. It was the one Joey had pointed out. At that moment, she forgot about the comic and just focused on Joey. There was something unique about him that Alex couldn't quite explain, but she liked that. Something interrupted her thought though, and it was Justin calling her name.

"Alex?" Justin snapped his fingers in front of her to get her attention. After some snaps she looked at Justin.

"Alex, did you happen to see my comic?"

"No, please, I wouldn't go in your room."

"Uh, mom said you went in there to get the box."

"Yeah, and that's all. I didn't see your stupid comic. Sheesh, like everything has to be my fault." Alex jumped up from the couch and started towards her room to avoid more of Justin's questions. But Justin continued to hound her.

"You know where it is. You were the only one in that room."

"Justin, I know you know that I don't know. I mean who knows really?" Alex quickly blurted. She mentally checked if her sentence made sense. Justin raised his eyebrow and tried to make sense of Alex's gibberish. Seeing Justin's confused face, Alex quickly scurried off to her room. She continued on even after Justin yelled her name.

"Alex!"

The next morning at school, Alex shuffled through her books in her locker, still thinking about Joey. Enough so that she was surprised when Harper tapped her on the shoulder. Alex turned around to meet Harper's usual cheery deposition.

"Hi Alex! Isn't just an absolutely beautiful morning?" Harper joyfully exclaimed. Alex put her hand to her faced and rubbed her temples.

"Well Harper, it was. That is, until you interrupted me. Can't you see I'm doing something important?" Harper looked Alex up and down and then to her locker.

"Uh, standing at your locker?" Harper questioned. Alex turned around to close her locker. She then twirled around and slumped against the locker as she began to regale about her yesterday to Harper.

"No Harper. Yesterday, I met this guy at the charity. He's just wow…he's funny, he's sweet, and he's…"

"Incredibly cute?" Harper interjected excitedly. Alex, flurried with emotions, could only shake her head in agreement as the two giggled afterwards. Fully intrigued, Harper continued.

"So does he have a cute smile, kind of like Justin's. You know, like when Justin wins something and then he gets that sly cute smirk on his face…" Harper words and coherency began to slow down as she thought more of Justin, her focus now into space. Her talking about Justin made Alex cringe.

"Harper! Ew! Just…eww! Can we please stop talking about Justin." Alex shuddered at Harpers description of her brother. Few things could make Alex completely disgusted. But this came close enough, even pushing the boundary.

"Oh sorry Alex, I just get so carried away when I talk about Justin. So what were you saying?"

"Like I was saying, his name is Joey and he's just….Harper I can't even describe it. I've only known him for like 5 minutes but I just felt an instant attraction to him. There's something unique about him. Harper, I don't think I've felt like this since…"

"Not like since Dean?" Harper finished. Alex nodded again which garnered an excited high pitched giggle from Harper.

"So you going to see him again?" Harper asked.

"That's the problem, I only know his name and where he volunteers at. I had to leave quick 'cuz my mom had to go and ruin everything. Then when I got home, Justin had to freak out on me."

"What'd you do now Alex?"

"I don't know, something about a comic book or something. Some geek thing. Now he's accusing me of losing it." Alex stated nonchalantly.

"Alex! You don't mean his mint edition of Dr. Electron?!" Harper reprimanded. Her voice elevated enough to surprise Alex as she jumped back a bit.

"Oh no Harper, not you too?" Alex exasperated. "Come on, it's just a dumb comic book, not like it's so important."

"Alex! That comic book is probably the rarest one of any comic book series! You got to do something." Before Alex responded, a voice came from behind her.

"Yea Alex, you should do something…like admit you lost it!" The two girls looked towards the person. It was Justin. He still had an upset facade on his face. Realizing it was Justin, Alex rolled her eyes and folded her arms, reading herself for his usual rant.

"Admit it Alex, I know you lost it, I just know. You were the only one who went into that room after I last saw it." Justin folded his arms as he stood next to Alex. He tried to stare down her, but Alex just avoided his deathly gaze.

"Justin, you need to get over it. I mean, there must be other comics out there. You're just acting silly, right Harper." Harper hesitated a bit. "Uh…um…sorry Alex, I have to agree with Justin here." Justin smirked at her agreement. Alex stood shocked, she gritted her teeth and reprimanded Harper. "Harper!"

"And Alex needs to admit she's wrong and tell me where my comic is, shouldn't she Harper?" Justin questioned.

Harper hesitated some more, stuck between an argument between the two siblings. She grew more uncomfortable as the two looked at her waiting for her response. The pressure got to her however and she quickly evaded the question and argument.

"Uh…hey look at the time; I guess I should get to class." She quickly said.

"Harper!" Alex yelled after her. She turned around to see Justin still upset at her.

"Face it Justin, I'm not going to tell you where it is, because I didn't lose it!"

"Alex, I know you lost it, and I'm going to find out!"

"What are you going to do? Cast a spell?" Alex quipped. She then let out a condescending laugh and walked away. All Justin could do was stand there in anger. Suddenly he thought of an idea and his frown turned into a maniacal grin.

"You know Alex, that's exactly what I'm going to do. I know it's forbidden, but for Dr. Electron, it needs to be done!" Justin said to himself. He waited a bit for the hallway to clear up, then seizing upon the opportunity he cast the truth spell on Alex who was still within distance.

_"Some are evil, some are kind, but now Alex must speak her mind."_

Quickly, he rushed after Alex.

"Hi Alex, how's it going?" He said with an ominous tone. Alex looked around a bit and then squinted her eyes in suspicion. "What is it now Justin?"

"Oh nothing, I was just wondering…did you lose my rare edition of Dr. Electron?" Alex was about to respond with a 'no' before something in her forced her to say otherwise.

"Yes Justin, I did" Alex was shocked at her response and quickly covered her mouth with her hands. She didn't understand quite what happened but knew Justin had something to do with it.

"Justin! What'd you do? You cast a spell didn't you?"

"Yes! And it was needed. Now, where is my comic?" He questioned again.

"I accidentally dropped in your box that I took to the charity." After Alex has said the truth she quickly covered her mouth again. Justin grinned again at the satisfaction of him winning.

"Aha! I knew it all along. You better hope its still there, otherwise you'll pay for it!" Justin glared at her a bit more to make his point then began to walk away. He turned his head to say one more thing. "And I don't just mean literally."

Still with her hands over her mouth, Alex went after Justin. She took one hand off to tap Justin on the shoulder, and then used it to point at him.

"Justin! Take this spell off right now!"

"Alright Alex, I will…after school that is." Justin feigned an evil laugh as he walked away. The bell rang which forced Alex to run to her class.

For most of the day, Alex held her hands over her mouth as much as possible. She kept silent as best she could, a feat most impossible for her. Fortunately, she only had two classes left. She walked into her next classroom and found Harper sitting at a desk already. Alex looked around cautiously and silently sat next to Harper.

"Alex? You ok?" Harper asked her. Alex only nodded as she kept her hands over her mouth. "You sure you're ok? I mean you're holding your hands over your mouth" Harper continued. Alex looked around a bit then leaned in closer to Harper.

"Justin cast a truth spell on me and only he can take it off. I'm just trying to keep myself from saying anything."

"Oh, ok, I understand."

"Thanks Harper…oh and by the way, your shirt looks ugly." Alex unconsciously stated. She quickly cupped her hands over her mouth realizing her statement.

"Sorry Harper! It's this stupid spell!" Alex apologized.

"Uh, its ok…I think." Harper had a confused looked on her face as she turned towards the front. For Alex, this day was going by too slow, and she needed it to end. What she wished for was just to see Joey once more. But at the moment, she had more pressing issues to deal with.

The teacher walked in through the door. The movement of him walking through caught Alex's attention and she turned back to look at the door. The next moment she couldn't have ever even dreamed of happening. Walking through the door was a familiar face and a cute smile. It was Joey, and he was just as surprised to see Alex as Alex was to see him. Alex couldn't believe it. Time itself had slowed down and him walking through the door seemed like a dream. Only Alex knew that it wasn't and she was flurried with emotions. So much so, she could figure out what to do; wave or say hi? She opened her mouth to say hi, then stopped and instead just decided to wave. The two teens looked at each other, Alex from her seat, Joey sitting down across the room. Quickly, Alex nudged Harper.

"Harper, Harper! It's…it's…" She tried to mutter out quickly.

"What is it now Alex? My shoes aren't exactly to your liking." Harper asked sarcastically.

"No, no, that guy I was talking to you about earlier, it's him! Over there, he's here at our school in our class." Alex excitedly expressed. Alex looked over to where Joey was and Harper turned her head to look. They were met with Joey looking at Alex. He managed to wave and Alex waved back at him.

"Wow, Alex, you weren't kidding when you said he was really cute. Oh my gosh, what are you going to do?"

"That's the thing Harper, I'm afraid to go over there and talk to him, because of this stupid spell. I'm afraid I'll say something totally embarrassing." Alex said sounding frantic. "Don't worry Alex, we'll um, we'll figure something out." Harper reassured her.

Before the two girls could continue with their conversation, the teacher started the lesson.

"Alright students, we're going to do something a little different today. In order to digest the lesson better, I'm pairing up each of you and you and your partner will complete a worksheet before the end of class." The whole class grumbled, but despite it, the teacher continued. "Once I tell you your partner, take a sheet from up here."

Hearing the lesson plan, Alex felt a bit uneasy. In the pit of her stomach, she knew she was going to be unlucky enough to end up with Joey. Looking worried, she turned and whispered to Harper.

"Harper, this is not good. I repeat, not good. What if I get paired with Joey?" Alex said panicky. Harper placed her hand on Alex's shoulder and tried to calm her down. "Don't worry Alex, it's not like the first names he calls out will be yours and Joey's."

"Alright, the first pair: Alex Russo and Joseph Brody." The teacher subsequently said. Alex slumped in her desk and put her head down. This day only got worse for her. Yet despite the circumstance, she felt ambivalent; happy to be with Joey, upset about the spell. There was nothing she could do about it. She'd have to come up with a plan and quick as the teacher had finished naming off groups. Alex quickly shuffled ideas in her head, shooting each one down, not being satisfied. Unfortunately it was too late as she heard someone say her name behind her.

"Alex? You okay?" The voice said. She put on a smile and turned around to Joey.

"Joey! Hi, of course, sit." She said succinctly trying to keep her talking to a minimum. Joey looked at her with a raised eyebrow, but shook his head and smiled. Seeing him smile made Alex a bit more relax even enough to forget about the spell.

"Joey, I was so surprised to see you. I didn't know you went to school." She responded.

"Well sure, it's a little thing I do when I'm not out saving villages from diseases." He playfully jested. Alex giggled at her previous statement. This prompted Joey to laugh too. Alex was having too much fun to stop her from blurting out her next statement.

"Yeah, I think you're really cute." Alex quickly cupped her mouth realizing what she had blurted out. Fortunately for her, Joey didn't catch it all. "What?" He asked. Now Alex was in a rut. She'd have to wing it.

"Uh…um…I said…I totally knew…that you went to school that is." Alex awkwardly replied. She looked at his face to pick up any cues on if he had heard what she said. But despite his initial unsure face, he smiled after. She felt relieved.

"Right, sure, I was just joking with you." He stated.

"So how come I've never seen you around here?" She quickly said. After she had said her sentence, she placed her hand over her mouth again. It garnered a hesitation from Joey.

"Uh, well, I just transferred here. So that's why, anyways, are you ok?" He asked again concerned about Alex's confusing actions. She panicked some more and quickened her talking.

"What? Me? Never better." This time instead of cupping her hands over her mouth, she made a big smile. Joey nodded his head a bit in agreement. "I have to say, I was glad to see you again." He continued.

"Really? Me?" She coyly remarked as she let out a demure smile. As she was still relishing in his response, he had reached down to grab his book from his bag.

"Well I have to say that, I want to kiss you." Alex unexpectedly stated. Surprised herself, she cupped her mouth. Fortune with her again, Joey didn't hear her.

"Hmm?" He prompted as he placed his book on his desk.

"Uh, I said that I'm glad to see you…too…um yea." She smiled big again to back up her the genuine of her statement. "Uh so, we should probably get started on this relationship…I mean! Started on this assignment." Alex said fumbling with her words again. She quickly turned around and pretended to shuffle things around in her backpack to avoid embarrassment. "Yea sure." Joey said behind her. She turned and plopped her book down, and slowly opened it. She then checked the clock: 12:40. Only 5 minutes had passed. It was going to be a long class for her. And this time, fortune wasn't with her as she felt awkward the rest of the class.

The bell had rung and Alex hadn't felt so relieved. They had worked on the assignment with little discussion. After fumbling with her words, Alex was all too cautious and didn't want to blurt out something embarrassing again. But she kept up her smiles and laughed at his jokes. She didn't want him to think she wasn't interested.

Alex began putting her books in back into her bag. Out of the corner of eye, she could see Joey getting up. At that point, she had thought she was off the hook. But she turned around to see Joey still standing there.

"Hey Alex, I know that we've only known each other for a while, but…" He stopped a bit to gather his words. "Seeing that you have such enthusiasm for charities…" Alex smiled and nodded at his statement. "…I was wondering if you were free this Friday, that you'd like to go to a benefit concert with me? All the best bands are playing in it."

"I'd love to go." Alex said quickly, perhaps too quickly as it made her seem eager. Then she had realized that she had said 'love'. This spell was creating havoc for her in ways she didn't realize.

"Great, I'll pick you up around 7 then."

"Ok, sure." She replied. Joey nodded and smiled as he walked out of the class. Harper, who stood at a distance quickly rushed to Alex, all giddy.

"Oh my gosh, so tell! Tell me what happened." She excitedly queried.

"Well, the spell was being stupid, but…he asked me out on a date." Alex said happily. The two giggled giddily.

The day had gone better than Alex had expected. Perhaps enough so that she'd forget about Justin's spell.


	2. Part 2

* * *

Lie? Or Anti? Part 2

A/N

-Not much to say besides this is the second part. Again I don't own wizards of waverly place or anything related to it.

-Please Read and Review. Keep criticism constructive. Enjoy!

* * *

No words could describe what Alex was feeling at the moment. The night was warm and the sky clear with the stars sparkling like diamonds above them. Holding hands with Joey while strolling down the Waverly Place alley was something magical for her. No possible spell could possibly make her feel like she did now; a feeling so real and genuine. The two stopped outside the Waverly sub station underneath the soft lighting from the lamps hanging above the door. However, unbeknownst to them, Justin was spying in a window above the door, waiting to exact his revenge on Alex. He peered out of the window curtains down below.

"Thanks so much Joey for tonight. I had a pretty good time. It was especially funny after that guy dove for a crowd surf. I mean who would have thought no one was going to catch him." Alex said. The two laughed at that moment from the concert.

"Well, thanks for going with me. You really made the night quite…"he stopped and pondered for the right word.

"Magical?" Alex said finishing his sentence. "Yes, exactly what I was thinking." Joey continued.

As the two conversed, Justin made his move.

"Alright Alex, you lose my prized comic, you lose your new friend." He muttered quietly. He took the wand from his back pocket and held it out as he cast his spell.

_"Revenge is a slippery road, but make this fool sound like a toad."_

Justin cast the spell and waved the wand towards his sister down below. After casting, he smirked and peered outside to see his revenge in action. He waited, and waited. Seconds were going by but nothing was happening. He looked down again at the two, who were still conversing to each other as if nothing had happened. Justin mentally checked if he had said everything right; if the wand was pointing the right way; if perhaps he'd have to cast another spell. He opened his mouth to mutter out his frustration.

_ribbit_

Justin turned around in shock, looking around the room to see if someone else was there.

_ribbit_

No one was around, and this time, he had realized where the sound was coming from. It was coming from him. Justin couldn't believe it. He had pride himself on being dead on with his spells, but this was an embarrassment. "How could this have happened?" he pondered. Once again he peeked out the window to check on the two: nothing. He realized that somehow, by some force unknown to him, his spell had backfired. Justin sat there beneath the window, trying to explain in his mind how this could have happened. But below, the two still talked.

"You know, I don't think I've ever met someone quite like you. I know it sounds crazy, but it's just, you're funny, sweet, and well, there's just something about you that I like. Some quality I can't quite explain." Joey confessed.

"Really? Because I feel the same way too. Like there's just…something…" Alex voice had trailed off, becoming quieter after each word as the two moved closer to each other.

It felt forbidden, being outside with her parents just inside, yet it was exciting for her. Her heart beating faster as his lips moved closer to hers. Each second seeming like minutes, like time had slowed, and Alex's anticipation was building. It would have been the perfect way to top Alex's night, only had it actually happen. Only centimeters away from each other, the door next to them suddenly opened, the light from inside all to glaring.

"Alex, so nice you got home on time." Her father reprimanded. He stood at the door arms folded.

"Dad!" Alex yelled. She let out a noticeable sigh as she crossed her arms.

"Hello Joseph. Goodbye Joseph. Alex Russo, inside now." Jerry firmly demanded. He moved aside to let Alex through the door. Despite Alex's attempts to reason, Jerry ignored and continued to usher her in. Eventually Alex gave up and grudge along inside. As she walked in, she turned around and waved and smiled back at Joey, in which he smiled and waved goodbye. Jerry had seen enough and he let out a gruff 'ahem'. This was signal enough for Joey.

"Um, well I should get going. Night Alex…Mr. Russo." Jerry only nodded instead of saying goodbye. As Joey walked away, Jerry went in and closed the door behind him. Alex quickly darted for the stairs to avoid a dreaded lecture. But her Dad stopped her and gave her his lecture. Justin on the other hand had his own issues to deal with.

Justin stood outside his door baffled. He couldn't explain what had happened just moments ago. Thoughts raced through his mind: did he cast the wrong spell? Did Alex cast something back? Or perhaps was there something more sinister at work. Whatever the case, Justin planned to get to the bottom of this, and he'd start with questioning Alex. He stood in the hallway waiting for Alex. After a few minutes of waiting, Alex came trudging through the hallway.

"Alex, I have to talk to you."

"Please, not now Justin, I already got an earful from dad. He's about as mad about this as that time I spilt soda on his favorite armchair." Alex said.

"But this is important…wait that was you?!" Justin said surprised.

"Uh…no…I don't know what you're talking about." She said with a tone of uncertainty. The two Russo kids stood at a distance, an awkward silence ensuing. Alex arms folded looking at the wall, and Justin giving a cold stare.

"Just never mind about that now, look, we got problems. I think there's something fishy going on around here. And it has to do with your boyfriend."

"Justin, if this is part or your revenge plan then just forget it ok. I can't believe you'd stoop so low as to try to accuse Joey of something." Alex reprimanded. She moved past Justin after she had made her statement. But Justin grabbed her by the arm to get her attention.

"Alex, I'm serious. When you two were out there, I cast a toad spell in which you were supposed to croak into embarrassment, but no, it backfired and it was cast on me! Which could only mean one thing…" Justin stood closer to Alex as if to tell a secret. "Anti-caster." Justin ominously whispered. A silence enveloped the hallway and both Justin and Alex stood in the middle of it. Alex gave Justin an incredulous glare in contrast to Justin's stern face.

"An anti-caster? You have got to be kidding me." A frustrated Alex retorted. "And you we're spying on me?"

"Uh what?...no, I don't know what you're talking about." Justin responded with the same ere of uncertainty as Alex had responded earlier. He continued, "That's beside the point. The point is that your new hubby, is an anti-caster, that's right."

As the two continued to argue, Max moseyed up to them, however with no intention of getting involved. The two teens were standing in front of the bathroom door and that was Max's destination.

"Excuse me, can you two move? Unless one of you is gonna use it." He said in a less than caring tone. "Just a second Max." Justin quickly responded, not really caring or paying attention to his question. The two teens however bickered some more.

"I know that you're just doing this because I lost your dumb book." Alex asserted.

"As much as I love to get my revenge, I seriously think something is up with him. You can't trust him." Justin responded. At this point, Max was getting annoyed. He held his legs together and started to squirm about. He tried again to get their attention.

"Seriously guys, I don't think I can hold it any longer." He exasperated. "Hold on a second Max!" Alex replied with the same indifference as Justin.

"If you don't trust me, then how about you ask your boyfriend about it. Since you two are already swapping spit, you can swap secrets too!" Justin remarked. Alex let out a loud gasp.

"How dare you!? And for your information, we didn't kiss because Dad interrupted!"

"Good then! In fact, I bet Dad would be thrilled to know that your new boyfriend is an anti-caster." Justin responded.

"Guys…" Max uttered out to no avail.

"You tell dad and I'll make you suffer. You don't even know for sure!" Alex replied back, ignoring Max.

"Guys…" Max uttered again

"I'm a man of my word, and I know that what happened back there was not a mistake. He anti-cast and I know it!"

"I gotta go pee!" Max yelled as he pushed both them aside and ran into the bathroom. He quickly shut the door behind him. The two teens stood there still seething at each other. Both gave each other cold stares and walked to their own rooms. The conversation was over, but the argument would continue.

* * *

Even by the following Monday, tempers were still apparent. Now whenever Alex would think of Joey, she'd think of Justin's accusation. And it made her even more upset; upset that Justin had tainted her thoughts. She stood at her locker taking out the books she needed. She then closed her locker only to be surprised by Justin standing behind the locker door. Seeing Justin startled her a bit, even more so since he had a night vision goggle contraption on his head.

"Justin! What do you think you're doing? And what is that on your head?" She said in a hushed tone as to not draw attention.

"Look Alex, since you won't believe me, I decided to take it upon myself to reveal the truth. It's what Dr. Electron would do!" Justin held his arms akimbo in a heroic pose as he looked off in space.

"And that thing on your head?" Alex asked again.

"This is specially designed goggles to scientifically identify anti-casters."

"That's what we have magic for." She replied condescendingly.

"No. It's not the Dr. Electron way." Justin said in his attempted heroic tone. Alex looked at him and shook her head in disbelief.

"Okay, whatever, just…I better not find you spying on him or us. Got it Dr. whacko?"

"Oh please. You won't ever notice me, because I can become unnoticeable just like Dr. Electron." Justin said confidently. She looked up and down at him, from his white shoes to his completely obvious and ridiculous contraption on his head. She looked at him with complete disdain and disbelief. "Sure." Alex said curtly.

Justin ignored her scorn and went off on his way, slowly creeping around corners. Alex could only shake her head and chuckle.

* * *

Alex couldn't wait until class to talk to Joey. She didn't want Justin to get to him first and give him the wrong impression about her family. It was lunchtime and Alex searched around the school for Joey. She walked quickly down the hall and upon turning the corner, bumped right into Joey. Besides the fact she had ran right into him, she was glad to find him.

"Joey, so nice to see you. I've actually been looking for you." She said adjusting herself.

"Really, that's weird because I was looking for you. I wanted to talk about…well about last Friday." He said sounding like he had something to confess.

"Oh, is that so…" Alex said quietly, unsure of whether or not she wanted to know. What if it was about Justin's spell? Whatever it was, Joey didn't sound too happy about it.

"But, first, maybe we should find somewhere to sit." Joey suggested. Alex nodded and followed next to him. All the wonderful feeling she had felt last Friday was gone. Now she couldn't even look at him, feeling as though he might be what Justin had suggested. Inside, she was torn with ambivalence. Joey was everything an anti-caster wasn't, or at least as her dad had described them. Alex still kept a glimmer of hope, that maybe it'd be something different.

The two found a round table that was apart from the other tables in the cafeteria. Enough space that no one around them could listen in. The two sat apart from each other, sitting on opposite ends. It was a stark contrast to Friday where they were so close. Joey spoke first.

"Sorry for not really being specific about this, its just that…after Friday, I just felt, something." Alex grew more anxious, so much so that she expected him to flat out admit he knew about Justin's spell.

"Something?" Alex said in a hushed uncertain tone. Joey serious face suddenly turned into a smile. Although just a smile, Alex felt a bit more relieved, that perhaps the issue wasn't as serious as she thought. She eased up a bit more.

"Well maybe something isn't the best word. What I mean is, that I felt a connection. I haven't felt like this with any girl before. And well, its just that, I really really like you." He confessed. Alex sighed inwardly. She was glad it had not been about anti-casting or magic. All it was about, was perhaps something she had been overlooking because of the whole magic incident; that something being a feeling incomparable to anything she had felt before. And one she couldn't believe she had temporarily forgotten. She smiled demurely at him and suddenly her anxiousness was lifted.

"Really, because I feel the same way. Like, there was a unique connection. Especially during that…kiss." As she said the last word, Joey erupted in a chuckle. Alex felt even more so at ease.

"Right, the kiss…the one where you're dad interrupted. Heh, that was quite embarrassing." He said light heartedly.

"Yeah, I know. Even more so for me, because I had to deal with my dad." Alex replied. The two laughed a bit at their misfortune that Friday night. Whatever anxiety Alex had left had quickly dissipated.

"I'm glad that's what you meant." Alex blurted out without thinking. Joey looked at her oddly, with a half smile and half confused look.

"What do you mean?" he asked. Alex quickly realized that perhaps she had said too much. Amidst her 'ums' and 'uhs' she searched for someway to change the subject. Looking at Joey, she saw the medallion he wore around his neck. She quickly made a comment.

"Uh, that's a pretty cool medallion you got there…yah…" she blurted quickly. But it had worked as Joey looked down at his medallion and held it out more clearly.

"Oh, this? Yeah, my uncle gave it to me. He travels abroad a lot. Just the other day, I got an email from him. He's in South Africa actually. Anyways, whenever he comes back here, he brings back gifts from his travels. And this medallion here is a recent gift. It's quite nifty." The medallion was bronze with engravings on it. On one side was an engraving of a coin of some sorts. On the opposite side was supposed to be blank, yet there was something etched in it. Something Alex didn't notice before when she saw the medallion last Friday. From where she sat, she couldn't quite make out what it said.

"Supposedly, this here is a trinket, a treasure of sorts. My uncle said that medallions like these were engraved with things of importance. In the case, this one has a coin on it, meaning money. Anyways, the saying goes, 'who or what is most important to you, is closest to your heart.' So by wearing it, the thing you value is literally close to your heart, but metaphorically…well you get the point. Seems a little silly I guess. I mean, trinkets, old traditions, magic, just seems too farfetched."

"You'd be surprised." Alex replied back while giving him a sly smirk.

Joey shifted the medallion in his hand. Alex tried to focus on it, trying to discern the writing on the back. She decided it'd just be best to ask to see it.

"Can I see?" she asked. Joey took the medallion off and extended his hand to give it to her. He was about to drop it off onto her hands until something stopped him. A younger girl with black hair dark brown eyes, much like Joeys, walked up to the table.

"Hi Joey." She said cheerfully. Joey slowly took his hand away.

"You. What do you want?" He said with some disdain.

"Oh, just here to bother you, like usual." She sarcastically replied. She then looked at Alex and greeted her, "Hi." The girl said with the same cheerful disposition as before. Alex smiled back and said hi herself. Joey usurped himself into the greeting.

"Uh Alex, this is my sis Cammie; Cammie, who really should be going now…" Joey glared at her as Cammie returned a glare of her own, but all in jest. "…this is Alex."

"Oh, I didn't know you had a sister." Alex remarked.

"Of course he didn't mention me, because he's just mean like that." Cammie joked. Joey rolled his eyes and shook his head in disapproval.

"Seriously, what you here for?" Joey asked.

"Remember that creepy guy from earlier today? The one with that dumb thing on his head?"

"What? Why? Was he following you?" Joey asked in a more serious tone.

"Well, was…and still is." She replied as she discreetly pointed across the cafeteria. The three looked across over to a kid wearing a goggle contraption on his head who was sitting at a table. As soon as the kid noticed they were looking at him, he quickly pretended to look out the window. Alex, suddenly became infuriated, and stood up.

"Justin!" She shouted.

"Justin? You know him?" Joey asked her.

"Uh…yeah, he is…the…local school…whacko…yea that's it." Alex slowly conjured up trying to pretend as if she didn't know him.

"You know what, I'll deal with him. I mean he's been following me and Cam." Joey asserted as he got up. Alex promptly stood in front of Joey to stop him.

"No! Um…you know what, I'll talk to him." Alex reassured.

"He could be dangerous, I'll talk to him." He replied back to her. Alex shook her head "no" in response.

"I'll take care of this. Trust me, I've had experience dealing with this weirdo, lots of experience. Besides, it's almost time for class, and you two should probably go."

"You sure?" Joey asked her.

"Yeah, don't worry about it. He's practically harmless." She said nonchalantly. "Alright then. See you in class." He replied back.

"Yeah, see you too." The two stood at a distance exchanging smiles and waves goodbye. Perhaps a bit longer than needed as Cammie got annoyed and took Joey by the hand and tugged him to go. He reluctantly went, but not without turning around and waving again back at Alex. Alex stood there still smiling, waiting until the two left the cafeteria. As soon as they did, her cheerful smiling face turned into an angry visage. She hurriedly walked across the cafeteria over to Justin, who saw her coming. Justin quickly took his drink and started sipping pretending to ignore Alex. He jumped a bit when Alex slammed her hands down on the table.

"Justin! What do you think you're doing!?" She said in irate hushed tone.

"Saving your butt, that's what." He replied back in a hushed tone as well.

"Saving me!? You mean spying and being all creepy, especially on a 9th grade girl!" Alex reprimanded. Justin stood up and started to defend his actions using concise gestures.

"Look! Don't be fooled by that cute smiling face. Beneath it is a cold cruel bloodthirsty killer waiting to destroy any wizard at a moments notice." Justin poignantly asserted. Alex gave him a look of disbelief.

"You serious? She's in 9th grade. Spilt milk is probably more dangerous." Alex retorted.

"I'm not kidding ok. Those two are anti-casters and I know it. And if what dad said is true then they'll all be too eager to reveal you and me." Justin replied back.

"Justin, just give it up. Ok fine, you win, your revenge has been had. There, you happy now? Just leave him and his sister alone! You have no proof that they're anti-casters, get it?" Alex ardently remarked. Justin sighed a bit and took his goggles off. He went around the table to stand closer to Alex, his face turning more serious.

"Alright, fine, look. Stupid gadgets, and super heroes aside, I really do think something is up. That night, my spell backfired, a spell which could not possibly backfire. I mean shouldn't me going out of my way to protect you and making a complete fool of myself account for something? Shouldn't just me being concerned for your safety be proof enough." Alex, who had her arms folded stood there unable to conjure up something to say. She looked at Justin who still held a serious face, then to the floor. Perhaps Justin had a point. Alex didn't want to believe it, but she couldn't deny Justin's actions. Justin placed his hand on Alex's shoulder to reassure her.

"Just think about it." He let out. He then walked towards the cafeteria doors. Alex watched him walk out. She hated what this did to her. One side her felt and knew that Joey was innocent. But on another, more curious side, she felt that perhaps Justin had some point. And it's this split that she hated. She hated not feeling like she could trust Joey fully. Justin had his way of finding out, but Alex decided to do it her way: the Alex Russo way; which was to use magic that was clearly restricted to use at school.

She didn't feel all too well walking to class. She had a makeshift plan, but just going ahead with it meant she didn't trust Joey. Feeling uneasy, she walked in the room and sat next to Harper. Across the classroom was Joey who was talking to someone else. He looked back at Alex and waved. She waved back, but this time with an uneasy smile. Harper began talking to her, but all the words just bounced off Alex as she wasn't listening to Harper. All she could think of was what she was going to do next. She looked around to check how many people were in the classroom. A couple kids were near them and some others spread out across the room. She couldn't cast a spell with them near her. She then turned to Harper who was still talking.

"Harper, I need you to help me." She interrupted.

"Wait, you weren't even listening to me talk about my aunt's albino gecko collection?"

"What? No, never mind, tell me later. Just right now I have to cast a spell but there's people around." Alex responded to her.

"A spell? But isn't that forbidden here at school?" Harper worriedly asked.

"Harper, you should know by now that for me, forbidden means nothing. Now just distract these kids over there as I cast the spell." Alex reassured her.

"Uh, but what do I say?"

"I don't know?! Anything, talk about…your aunts lizards or whatever." She quickly responded to her. Harper shook her head and stood up from her desk.

"Uh, hey everybody, my aunt's got an awesome albino gecko collection." She shouted loud enough for everyone to look at her. Alex sighed and gave herself a face palm. She tugged on Harper to talk to her.

"Harper! You're supposed to distract them over there! Not here next to me." Alex hushed.

"Oh right, sorry." She apologized. Harper walked over to the group of students and started her gecko conversation. This was the perfect opportunity for Alex. She pulled her wand out of her backpack and discreetly pointed it towards Joey.

"Beneath the smiles, beneath the laughs, reveal any magic powers you may have." Alex waited a bit before she would go up to Joey. She began to put her wand away when some force unknown to her stopped her. Before she knew it she whipped around and cast a spell. It created a stack of pancakes on the teacher's desk in front of the class. Unfortunately, others saw the pancake appear.

"Whoa! Did you see that?" A student clamored. Soon everyone began discussing.

"How'd that happened?" Another student added. Alex began to panic.

"Hey, I saw Alex wave that thing in her hand. I must say, that was a nifty magic trick." A student pointed out. It had gotten worse for Alex, she was in trouble now. She hid the wand behind her back.

"What? No, I uh…I don't know what you're talking about. This is just a…cheerleader baton." Alex said with apprehension. Student began to crowd her asking her all sorts of question. It was getting out of hand and Alex rushed to think of a plan. But she couldn't think straight with people asking her questions. She looked around and saw Harper behind the crowd worried. On the other side of the crowd, she saw Joey who looked both confused and concerned. It got worse as the teacher walked in from another door on the opposite side of the room.

"What is going on in here!" The teacher yelled over the clamor around Alex. The crowd looked behind to the teacher who now stood behind the desk. He in turn held his arms akimbo and sternly looked at all the faces. Then he looked down at the pancakes on the desk, only to do a double take.

"And why is there a stack of pancakes on my desk?" He asked. There was a lull before someone spoke.

"It was a magic trick Alex did." Some student admitted. Soon the whole class began talking again. "Yeah Alex, show us another trick." Someone else suggested. Other's soon joined in on the suggestion. Alex didn't know what to do. She couldn't think straight with everyone talking. But again something forced her to cast another spell against her will. This time she took her wand and pointed it towards the teacher.

"You're mean and unfair, turn you now into a grizzly bear." She rattled off quickly. Alex closed her eyes not wanting to see the result. The silence that followed was deafening. She slowly opened her eyes to still find the teacher sternly looking at her. Soon the class erupted with laughter.

"Alex Russo! I will not take this kind of disrespect and nonsense in my classroom. Take your stuff and head down to the principle's office!" The teacher angrily reprimanded. Alex sighed a bit relieved that nothing had happened. She quickly tucked away her wand in her bag and headed towards the door. She looked back to see Joey's reaction, but he wasn't looking at her. Unlike the students around him, he wasn't laughing. Alex turned around and walked to the office.

* * *

The bench outside of the principles office seemed so cold; the hallways so empty. Alex buried her face in her hands as she contemplated. 'How could she have done this?' she thought. All she could think of was Joey not looking at her as she walked out. She felt like she had made a fool out of herself. What she had hoped is that he wouldn't think less of her. Another thought that she dreaded to think of was that perhaps Justin was right. Her spells had failed and backfired. She tried to justify it in many ways but it always came back to one thing: anti-caster. Just repeating that in her head made her upset. Those thoughts faded as she heard footsteps. She looked up to see who was walking towards her. It was Joey.

"Joey!" She said surprised to see him.

"Hey Alex. Heh, that was a pretty crazy class." He lightly joked. This time, he smiled, and just that simple act made Alex feel a bit better.

"Yeah…" She lamented.

"Um, look, what happened back there was…well… I think we both have secrets we've kept back." He slowly confessed. Alex stood up from the bench and walked a bit closer to Joey.

"Joey, I'm sorry that I didn't tell you, but its just…wait…both of us?" She stopped herself. He shook his head 'yes' at her question.

"Alex, the truth is…is that I'm an anti-caster." He let out. There was a brief silence between the two before he began again. "I just couldn't tell you for obvious reasons. You know, wizards and anti-casters aren't exactly best of friends. But I didn't care about that."

Alex felt like something had hit her in the stomach. Even worse she felt like all that she had hoped for was gone. Justin had been right. And she had been a fool for not believing him.

"So…the spells I cast back in the class room…you caused them to fail and backfire…?" She sadly asked.

"It was, and I'm so sorry, but it's just that, I was trained for so long to always dispel a wizard spell cast near or on you. But when I realized that it was you, I…well I couldn't let the others know you were a wizard. I couldn't let you reveal your powers…and for that perhaps, I'm in some serious trouble." Joey confessed sounding apologetic.

"Trouble…what trouble?" Alex looked at Joey who held a more serious visage now. He let out a sigh before he replied.

"According to anti-caster rules, it's forbidden to aid a wizard. Even though I had canceled your spell, in the end it didn't make you reveal your magic. The higher anti-casters out there can monitor most every magical thing we do…and I'm afraid it will be only a matter of time before they find out about this." Joey shook his head and tittered a bit realizing that he would be in trouble.

"But…why would you risk something like that…I thought anti-casters were supposed to hate wizards?" She asked. Joey chuckled a bit and smiled.

"Yeah, and I guess ogres are supposed to be blood thirsty killers. But those movies with that donkey and ogre seem to say otherwise." He lightly jested. It was enough for Alex to smile and wipe a tear from her eye. Joey walked closer to Alex and took her hand and held it in his. Only, before he could say something, Justin popped out from the corner behind Alex. He hurriedly walked towards Joey with his wand extended.

"Not so fast anti-caster. Get away from my sister!" He demanded. He quickly usurped himself in front of Alex lightly pushing her behind him.

"Justin!" She yelled. But Justin didn't listen.

"Not now Alex, just get out of here, I can deal with this." Justin reassured.

"Justin! Just stop now!" She pleaded again this time grabbing his arm. Justin tried to hold her back.

"Don't worry Alex, I can handle this." He again said.

"Justin, just stop. If it wasn't for him, everyone would have known about my powers." She sternly replied. Justin slowly turned around to look back at Alex who at this point was visibly upset. She continued.

"I'll deal with this ok? I can handle it, please, just let me handle this. Now its time for you to trust me." She pleaded. Justin looked at her face and knew she was being serious, so he gave in and took his wand back. He slowly backed up to let Alex talk to Joey.

"So I guess this 'whacko' is your brother." Joey jokingly remarked. Alex smiled.

"Yea, unfortunately." She jested back. "Why would you put yourself in this kind of trouble?" She asked again.

"Because…in the big scheme of things, you're more important than these dumb rules. Alex…all those things I said, I meant all of it. That Friday night, I just felt…some amazing attraction to you. Something, I just can't explain. Just, me meeting you like this seems fictional, but the feeling is all too real. And no amount of magic could make me feel this way." Joey took Alex by the hand again, this time with Justin standing aside not stopping them. "Alex, I really do like you very much. And I care about you too much for you to lose your powers just because of some stupid rule."

Alex was rushing with emotions. Everything that Joey had said was registering with her, but at the same time thoughts raced through her head. All the feelings of mistrust and betrayal before had faded. And now, she felt much more satisfied and at peace. All the silly rules and feelings and awkward moments just seemed trivial in light of what Joey had said. Even she herself felt a little dumb for worrying about it all. What had mattered was that she felt the same way about Joey as Joey feels for her. Alex's eyes began to well up.

"So you did that for me?" She asked amid her sniffles. He nodded. Alex smiled again even as some tears ran down her face. She smiled because she couldn't believe that it had come to this. The two stepped closer and embraced each other. Alex buried her face in his chest; Just having his arms around her made Alex feel at ease. She felt like all the problems were gone. If she could had have it her way, she would love to just stand there embracing him forever. But she knew it couldn't be like this. Joey backed up a bit to talk to Alex, his hands still on her shoulders.

"I can't stay much longer. Me being here has probably put you two in jeopardy. I'm afraid I…have to leave." He confessed to her.

"But you can't. We can go to my dad, he can figure out something." She feebly tried to reassure. But she knew and Joey knew what the right course of action was.

"I'm sorry Alex, but I think I've caused you enough trouble. The higher anti-casters council will know soon enough, and probably will send people soon." He calmly said to her.

"There has to be a way…" Alex said.

"I wish there was but…I can't put you in harms way." Joey smiled and nodded in reassurance. He then slowly backed away, still wanting to be with Alex. They waved to each other and he turned to walk away. Justin came up next to Alex and placed his arm around her to comfort her. Initially distrustful of Joey, he quickly came to understand the levity of the situation.

"Wait. Is there anyway I can still talk to you?" She asked stopping him. He turned around and much to her displeasure, he shook his head "no".

"It'd be too dangerous." He replied. He saw the sad look on her face as he said it and thought of something. He walked over to her again as Justin gave them space. This time, he took off his medallion.

"I want you to have this; to remember me by." Joey said to her.

"But, your uncle gave this to you, its important to you…" She responded. He took her hand and placed the medallion on her hand and held her hand between his.

"It's ok. Besides…what's most important to me…" He guided her hand towards her as he continued. "…will always be closest to your heart." Joey let go of her hands as Alex held the medallion close to her. There was a calm silence as the two looked at each other, Alex still sniffling. Justin who stood near them decided to input something.

"Aww. This is more touching than when Dr. Electron had to leave Miss Spark on Planet 9 because he had to go-"

"Justin!" Alex shouted at him.

"Oh…right; sorry; moment thing, got it." He apologized while backing away a bit.

Joey and Alex smiled and chuckled a bit at Justin's interruption.

"Well, I guess I should get going then. Gotta go find my sister and break to her the bad news." Joey remarked. He started to walk backwards again before saying something again, but this time to Justin.

"Oh. I think I have something of yours by the way." He snapped his fingers and something appeared in his hands. It was Justin's rare comic. He tossed it to an all too eager Justin. At the sight of it he became ecstatic.

"It's my limited edition of Dr. Electron! Dude, thanks!" He said excitedly, then he shifted his tone, "I mean…ahem…Dr. Electron would be proud of your actions." Justin said in his faux heroic tone. Alex shook her head in disgust.

"No prob." Joey replied. He let out a sigh and looked to Alex again. They each waved goodbye to each other one more time. He smiled to her the same way she remembered it the first time at the charity. But this time it was a goodbye. Joey snapped his fingers again and faded away until he disappeared. Alex felt as if the hallway was completely empty again. There she stood, in the middle of the hallway, clutching the medallion close to her still looking at the place where Joey had stood. Justin went up to comfort her again. She leaned on him as he eventually put his arms around her.

"So he's gone then." She said.

"I guess so. But at least you'll always have the memories." Justin reassured her. He let go of her and let her back up a bit. She wiped a tear from her eyes with her sleeve.

"Thanks by the way." Alex said to him.

"For what?" He said quizzically.

"For trying to protect me and all. You were right I guess." Justin smiled from the complement Alex gave him. "Well, I guess this time, being right didn't matter. Just doing my job." He said back to Alex. The two smiled and chuckled a bit.

"Come on, we should get home." Justin patted her on the back and started walking down the hallway. Alex began to turn to go, but looked at where Joey had stood one more time. She then looked down to the medallion she was holding. Finally, she could make out what had been etched on the back of the medallion. She figured it had been recently etched in as she didn't recall seeing it last Friday. In fact, seeing it made her remember even more minute details. Joey always adjusted the medallion to keep the etched side in the back and the coin always visible. Remembering this made her smile and instantly her emptiness that she had just earlier felt, all but seceded. And once more, she felt as though Joey was there with her again. She looked down at the letters etched on medallion again and smiled; for what had been inscribed there were 4 letters, 1 name: "Alex".

The End.


End file.
